Hau'oli City – a humble metropolis which forms the urban centre of Melemele Island. Despite its size, the city is equipped with luxurious 5-star hotels and a famous shopping district bustling with name brands and the latest fashion, making it a popular vacation spot with visitors from other regions. The beachfront is loved by tourists and locals alike, offering a magnificent view as well as an array of activities to enjoy. Make sure you try their specialty malasada as well!
Current Team:
Rowlet (Vero)
Grubbin (Gigabyte)
"Vero, Leafage! Gigabyte, Bite!"
Thwack!
The opposing Yungoos and Rattata slammed into the ground.
"Yo! This kid is sick!"
Judging from the other Trainer's height, he was an older teen. Maybe around nineteen? A visual delinquent, he wore a black singlet over a pair of matching pants and, of his face, only the eyes were visible, the rest masked by a bandana around the cheeks and a skull-faced skull cap. Swinging his arms in a sequence of incomprehensible gestures, he ended in a pose with both arms raised aghast.
"Tell me about it!" On his left, his partner (who was, appearance-wise, an almost perfect copy) completed the same ridiculous dance exactly one beat after. "Let's split!"
Returning their Pokemon to their respective Pokeballs, the pair spun an instant 180 degrees.
"Hold it right there!" Returning Gigabyte, I gave chase with Vero at my side.
"Give back Peeko!" the young boy behind me yelled as he followed.
"Are ya kidding?" said one of the thugs. "There's no way us members of Team Skull are gonna listen to a buncha kids like you!"
"Vero," I said. "Hit 'em with Leafage!"
"Kroo!"
Folding back slightly, Vero took a second to aim and fired.
Tuk! Tuk! Tuk!
"Yeowch!" the same thug yelped as he bounced into the air. "Bro, these kids are serious!"
"Tell me about it!" his partner replied.
Turning out of the alley and onto the street, we were suddenly confronted by a massive building. Huge enough to obscure part of the sun, it loomed towards us from the shadow of its own creation. A dark, menacing behemoth. A 'NO ENTRY' sign hung from the wire fencing that kept it in check, rotted over with red-brown mottles.
One of the Team Skull thugs looked at the other. "Bro?"
The other turned to look at the first. "Bro!"
Skidding to a halt, the pair spun back to face us. Taking two deliberate steps forward, they raised their arms to form Ts and looped them inwards to make two opposing Ds.
As Vero dove in to hover before me, I placed my fingers on Gigabyte's Pokeball. At that moment, the young boy arrived on the scene. Stopping the moment he spotted us, he leaned forward and broke into a panting fit.
"Give back. Peeko!" he managed to say amid gulps of air.
"Yo, kid!" the first thug said. "Here's some good news for you! Guess what? We're not interested in your puny Pokemon anymore!"
"But yaknow what?" the other took over. "We don't feel like givin' it back either."
"You won't have to," I said. "If you guys aren't going to hand it over, then I'll just take it back myself." Vero chirped as a follow-up.
"Ooh, scary!" said the first thug, exaggerating his eyeballs as he jiggled his fingers in the air. "But here's some news for you, hotshot! We're not interested in battling."
What?
"Yo, bro!" the other thug procured a Pokeball from his pocket. "Heads up!"
With a swing of his arm, the Pokeball landed in the first thug's grip. Despite the bandana masking his lips, I could tell there was a grin as he sneaked a glance at the building nearby. He reared his arm-
No. "Vero, go-"
"GIVE BACK, PEEKO!"
Whoosh.
As the boy's cry broke into the sky, Vero instantly leaped off the ground and sped towards the apex of the wire fencing. But it wasn't enough.
The first thug sniggered.
Striking the edge of the fence, the Pokeball was launched into a bounce that propelled it through one of the windows of the estate. It vanished from our eyes.
"P…" the boy stammered. "Peeko…"
Bursting into laughter, the two delinquents carried out a vertical high-five.
"Yo," the second thug said. "You totally owned that, bro!"
"Of course!" replied the first one amid guffaws. "Look at that kid's face. The big boss is gonna be so pleased when he hears about this!"
Scum.
"That Trainer kid looks pretty pissed though."
"Forget about him. He ain't got the guts to sic' us outside a Pokemon battle. Let's get outta here."
As the two proceeded to leave, Vero suddenly launched into the air.
"Vero. Stop."
Halting itself with a flap of its wings, it turned back to look at me.
"I know how you feel, but let them be," I said, ordering my fists to stop shaking. "They're not worth it."
Vero floated for a moment, seemingly considering my words before swooping back to land on my shoulder. Squeezing out a grin, I gave my partner a pat on the head before turning to face the boy.
He was quiet, but a distinct tension was emanating from his slight figure. Since he was wearing a singlet, I was just barely able to make out pulsations coursing through the tips of his shoulders. With his head bent forward, coupled with the shade granted by the brim of his cap, it was impossible to see his face directly. Unfortunately, that was still unable to hide the crystals plopping onto the asphalt at his feet.
A second wave of heat roared through my head, and I found myself reflexively grinding my teeth. As if reacting to my discomfort, Vero began fidgeting restlessly on my shoulder.
Lifting my head, I took in a deep breath and exhaled. Next, I took a step forward and placed a hand on the boy's shoulder.
"I'll get your Pokemon back for you," I said.
It took a while, but eventually, I felt his convulsions grow dormant. He violently rubbed his eyes and cheeks before lifting his head. Even then, his voice had a pinch of tremolo remaining in it.
"You can't," he said.
Taken aback, the script of comforting words I had so meticulously prepared in my head was blown into wind-lost fragments.
"Only the Kahuna and Trial Captain are allowed to go in there," he continued. "You see all the tall grass in there? That building's been abandoned for more than thirty years. All the wild Pokemon inside are really vicious. Even the adults stay away from it."
I shifted my gaze towards the dilapidated estate. The paint long expired, the walls of the building were a mushy grey, cracked and scratched over. Staring outward, the broken windows bared fangs of glass, keeping a consistent watch over the grass that flooded the surrounding earth and wherever the construction's foundation relented.
Oppressive. The wind that rolled towards me through the wire fence threatened to blow me away, making all the hairs on my skin whisper to me, telling me to leave. But there I stood, enduring the fear and the foreboding whipping against me and through me, for as much as I knew I wanted to turn my heels and go-
I have to go in there.
I gulped, swallowing the trace of nausea rising up my throat. Grabbing Gigabyte's Pokeball from my waist, I released my new team member into the open.
"What are you doing?" the boy said. "You're not really thinking of going in there, are you? Were you even listening?"
"What's your name?" I said, turning.
"Huh?"
"Your name," I repeated.
"D- It's Dylan."
"Peeko, was it? The name of your Pokemon?"
"Yeah," he said in a softened voice.
"What kind of Pokemon is she?"
"She's a Wingull, I caught her with Professor Kukui's help at the beach near his lab. She's my first ever Pokemon," a pause, then, he continued. "She's my partner."
"Well," I smiled. "Guess we can't leave her alone in there. Right, Vero? Gigabyte?"
Vero hopped on my shoulder and let loose a bright chirp. On the ground, Gigabyte twitched uncertainly. But after watching Vero's display of energy, it lifted its head up as high as it could and chirped as well.
"But-"
I silenced Dylan with a hand.
"Wait right here," I said. "We'll get Peeko back for you."
With that said, I turned to towards the estate and commanded, "Vero, Leafage!"
"Kroo! Kroo!" Launching into the air, Vero slammed a barrage of leaves into a lower section of the wire fencing.
"Now, Gigabyte," I jabbed my finger. "Break through with Vice Grip!"
Crack!
A few strikes were all it took to create a hole large enough for me to infiltrate the compound. Offering quick 'good jobs' to the two members of my team, I rushed in.
"Um!"
As I stood on the other side, I was suddenly stopped by Dylan's voice from behind.
"I'll be waiting right here," he said. "So please bring back Peeko!"
Offering him a backward thumbs-up, I grabbed Gigabyte and raced on.
"Hiss!"
That was the first sound that greeted me as I stepped through the broken doorway. No, 'sound' was the wrong answer.
How many of them are there?
Trotting out of the shadows were five, no, seven Meowth. Painted over in ashen grey, they were distinctly different from the Meowth I was used to seeing back in Kanto. Not only in terms of colour, but in terms of demeanour as well.
A pack. They must think I'm trespassing on their territory.
However, I could sense neither the edge of ferocity nor the flames of aggression from the group. In fact, while they all had their eyes fixed on me, they stood around lackadaisically with raised chins and loose eyelids. Two even had their arms folded across the chest, one yawning.
I took a step.
Thwam!
Something struck the floor with enough force to leave a dent in the concrete. Just a finger's breadth above my biggest toe.
Clang.
Petrified, I twisted my neck slick with sweat to look behind and saw a coin bounce off the wall and onto the ground. It was misshapen, with one point of the circle dented inward and a crack that ran to the centre.
I returned my gaze to the Meowth, but it was impossible to identify which had conducted the attack. They were just as, if not more nonchalant than before.
No, it's not that they don't care. They're just looking down on us.
"Vero. Gigabyte."
Leaping out of my arms, Gigabyte landed on the floor before me, flexing its mandibles. Above, Vero replied with a coo of acknowledgement.
"Break through!"
Vero and Gigabyte charged forward simultaneously with me following behind. One of the Meowth leaped to face them, claws swinging wide. Vero shot it down with an aerial Leafage. Before it could hit the ground, Gigabyte jumped and caught it with a mid-air Vice Grip using its mandibles, then tossed it upward, allowing Vero to finish it off with a high-speed Peck followed by Tackle.
However, the rest of the pack seemed unperturbed at the defeat of one of their members.
A second Meowth lunged towards Gigabyte, but before Vero could intercept with a blast of Leafage, a third hurled a coin into the air.
Thwack!
Struck in the head, Vero recoiled. On the ground, a fourth Meowth joined the second and, together, they darted around Gigabyte, taking turns to inflict Scratch attacks.
"Queep..!"
"Don't lose, Gigabyte!" I said. "Get 'em with String Shot!"
Darting backward slightly, Gigabyte sprayed a beam of white silk out of its mouth. It caught one of the Meowth in the knee, causing it to trip and crash into the other. As they fell, Gigabyte lunged in and grabbed both Meowth with a single Vice Grip and slammed them into the ground. Done with its opponents, Gigabyte fired a String Shot at the third Meowth which, preoccupied, completely overlooked the attack and was taken down just as it was about to hurl a new coin. Swooping in, Vero finished it off with a concentrated barrage of Leafage.
Still, the remaining three Meowth remained unconcerned. Two stepped forward, yawning as they tossed and caught coins with their free hands.
"Just a bit more to go!" I said. "Vero, Gigabyte, go and-"
Clap!
Before I could finish, one of the Meowth had suddenly pounced forward and clapped its hands directly in front of Vero and Gigabyte's faces, causing both of them to flinch.
A Fake Out attack? Fast-
Thwack!
From behind, the other Meowth hurled two coins. Both struck true.
"Gigabyte, String Shot!"
The closer Meowth somersaulted over the silk spray and landed into a Fury Swipes attack, slashing relentlessly.
Vero manoeuvred to assist its partner, but was quickly stopped by yet another coin from the Meowth standing behind.
What amazing teamwork.
Gigabyte was having trouble with its opponent, forced to constantly switch between hopping and ducking to evade the oncoming Fury Swipes. The fatigue from the previous battles was starting to show – its movements were getting sluggish. Of course, Vero wasn't doing much better. The speed of the Meowth's throws kept the owl Pokemon in check – it had to devote all its attention just to evade the projectiles that could come flying at any instant's notice.
I have to end this soon, or Vero and Gigabyte aren't going to last. If only there was a way to seal off one of the Meowth's movements-
Rumble.
Thunder?
Looking back through the doorway, I found the sky outside stained grey by a tumultuous downpour.
Rain? I was so engrossed in the battle that I didn't even notice. Wait a minute.
My eyes drifted to the strands of grass that were bravely defying the falling waters.
That's it!
Diving into the midst of Gigabyte's battle, I grimaced as the Meowth's claws dug through the back of my shirt.
"Vero, hold the others off! We'll be back!" Scooping Gigabyte into my arms, I dashed out of the doorway. A glance behind told me the Meowth was pursuing.
Good.
I stopped a short distance away from the entrance and placed Gigabyte onto the ground. The soil beneath our feet was soft and soaked through, squelching with the slightest pressure. Just then, the Meowth appeared at the doorway. It hesitated for a moment as it observed the earth and the pouring rain.
"Now, Gigabyte!" I said. "Use Mud Slap!"
Digging its feet into the wet soil, Gigabyte swerved its entire body in one swift motion, sending a wave of mud cascading towards the stunned Meowth.
"Hiss!" it screeched as the mud splattered its eyes.
"Now's our chance!"
While the Meowth desperately wiped at the dirt on its face, Gigabyte bounded forward and rammed into it with a powerful Vice Grip. Holding the Meowth within its jaws, Gigabyte proceeded to charge back into the building, aiming for the other Meowth in a beeline. Caught off guard by Gigabyte's sudden re-entry, the other Meowth was incapable of reacting in time.
Wham!
Both Meowth flew. And with a follow-up attack from Vero, they crashed, unconscious.
"Alright!" Just one more to go.
The final Meowth looked up from cleaning its nails. It looked at its two most recently fallen comrades, then at us.
Raising its arms, it shook its head with a shrug and said, "Pfft."
It walked back into the shadows.
What?
#
Unable to find Peeko's Pokeball in the vicinity of the window, we wandered deeper into the compound, suspecting that one of the wild Pokemon had taken custody of it. The rest of our expedition proved to be rather uneventful. Although the building was crawling with Meowth, no others chose to leave the shadows to confront us. Perhaps the one escapee from before had told them that we weren't worth messing around with. Not that I minded. Both Vero and Gigabyte were exhausted, but I kept them both at my side. Just in case. Periodically a stray Magnemite would wander across our path, beeping as it went.
Eventually, we arrived at a large door on the third storey of the compound. It groaned in protest as I struggled to shove it open, and a sound reached me from the inside.
Crackle. Crackle.
A fire? I shoved harder.
The room inside, like the rest of the building, was barren. However, on the wall opposite the doorway was what appeared to be the skeleton of a fireplace. And on the hearth of that fossil of ash-stained brick, a small flame simmered.
Sitting close to the flame was a familiar-looking Pokemon. A Grimer. Essentially puddles of slime with faces and arms, I had seen a few during my time in Kanto. They were filthy creatures that consumed waste, sometimes wandering out of the sewers to share their stench with the world. This Grimer was different though. Unlike the purple-slimed creatures I was familiar with, this one was dirty green with a yellow strip just beneath the lower lip. More surprisingly, no odour streamed from its pores.
Even more surprisingly, it was playing with a Pokeball, rolling the device up and down its body of slime.
"Ah!"
My outcry caught the creature's attention. Unlike the wild Pokemon I was accustomed to, however, it neither reacted aggressively nor shied away. It simply remained in its spot, gazing at me with curious eyes.
I glanced at Gigabyte and Vero. "Stay back, you two."
Then, striding towards the Grimer, I bent down so that my face was just slightly above the creature's.
"Would you mind returning that Pokeball?" I said. "There's a Pokemon inside and her Trainer is missing her really badly. I'm sure that she wants to see her Trainer as well."
The Grimer stared at the Pokeball in its grasp. For a moment, it seemed as if the Grimer could really see Peeko through the shell of the device.
It raised the ball towards me.
I smiled as I took it. "Thanks. You're a kind Pokemon."
Stuffing the Pokeball into my bag, I returned to my team and prepared to depart. But just as I was about to step out into the corridor, I was stopped by a pull on my leg.
"Gwaar."
I looked back, and the Grimer released its grip as I did.
"Yes?" I said.
"Gwaar." Raising an arm, it pointed at a Pokeball on my waist.
"You want to come with me?"
It nodded.
It was then I noticed the countless claw marks smeared across its body.
I unlatched an empty Pokeball from my belt and offered it with an outstretched hand. Grinning widely, the Grimer reached out and pushed the button in the middle.
Pop!
With a zap and a flash of red, the Grimer vanished.
#
The rain was a slight drizzle by the time I exited the building. Above, from tiny crevices amongst the flock of steel clouds, shafts of light shone through and lit up patches on the ground.
"Big bro!"
Dylan ran up to me as I crawled through the hole in the wire fencing. Before he could reach me, I removed Peeko's Pokeball from my bag and tossed it towards him.
Pop!
"Kaw! Kaw!"
"Peeko!" he yelled as he grabbed the seagull Pokemon and pulled it into an embrace.
"Don't ever lose her again, alright?" I said with a smirk.
"Of course!" he replied. "Thank you so much, big bro!"
"Don't worry about it. Sides," I tapped a Pokeball at my waist. "I found a new partner along the way."
Bidding Dylan farewell, I returned to the main street of Hau'oli City. The rain had stopped completely. To the right was the Hau'oli Beachfront, where residents and tourists alike indulged themselves in the heat of the sun, the wash of the waves and the tingling of the golden sand beneath their feet. Beyond that was the ocean, and beyond the ocean, the silhouette of an unknown land sat upon the edge of the horizon.
Now, where to next.
TO BE CONTINUED IN CHAPTER 04: DRIP
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